The world's largest music company is backing a startup that will offer free, ad-supported song downloads.

The move by Universal Music is a sign that music companies are willing to make a go of benefiting from digital distribution to counter illegal file sharing, writes the Financial Times. The startup, SpiralFrog, is due to launch in December; its model is based entirely on advertising revenue, eschewing subscription or download fees. It has also held talks with labels Warner, EMI and Sony-BMG.

Perry Ellis has said it would advertise on SpiralFrog. Levi's, Aeropostale, Benetton and others have expressed interest as well.

"Offering young consumers an easy-to-use alternative to pirated music sites will be compelling," SpiralFrog CEO Robin Kent, a former head of Universal McCann, is quoted as saying. For every legal download, there are 40 illegal ones, according to a recent report by the International Federation of Phonographic Industries.